In Practice: Reflections from NPs and PAs

December 8th, 2017

Trafficking: Taking Care of Sarah

Alexandra Godfrey, BSc PT, MS PA-C

Sarah The neighbors called the police when they heard screaming. An officer discovered her hiding in a closet in a trailer. In the emergency room bay, I find Sarah naked except for a T-shirt. Her legs are drawn up, arms wrapped around her knees, head down. She looks severely malnourished, and her teeth are broken […]

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November 15th, 2017

Nurse Practitioner by Day, Mama by Night (or All the Time)

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

As I first ventured into motherhood, I was often asked by my sisters, friends, and colleagues how I did it. Not only how I was able to be a mom while also working full-time as a regional nurse practitioner, in a role that involves frequent travel, but how I made it look so easy. To […]

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November 1st, 2017

Medical Trick-or-Treat

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

It’s one of my favorite times of year. The colors of the leaves are changing, there is a crisp feel to the air, and it’s Halloween time. The candy aisles are decimated, kids have donned their costumes and hit their preplanned routes or parties, and even some of the grown-ups have dressed up and managed […]

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October 17th, 2017

Emergency Medicine: A Life of Interruption

Alexandra Godfrey, BSc PT, MS PA-C

Emergency medicine is a life of interruption. Physicians, nurses, PAs, radiology techs, registration clerks: we are all constantly interrupted or interrupting. Unfortunately, interruptions and distractions and the consequent attention shift may lead to error. Sometimes, we fail to return to the original task, make an error in that task, or waste time on less urgent […]

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October 5th, 2017

An Old Procedure, A New Beginning

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

“My heart hurts,” said Brooklyn, then three years old, as she grabbed her chest and sat down. Quickly checking the girl over, Brooklyn’s parents felt her heart indeed pounding in her chest, and took her to the emergency department. There, they were shocked to hear that their daughter was in cardiac arrest. Shortly afterward, Brooklyn […]

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September 29th, 2017

I’ll Take “Nursing Ethics” for $200, Alex

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

First I noticed it all over my social media feed — the story of Alex Wubbels, a burn unit nurse at a university hospital in Utah who was arrested and manhandled by police for not allowing them to take a sample of blood from an unconscious patient without a warrant. Then came a slew of […]

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September 15th, 2017

Curbside Consultations: Checks and Balances

Alexandra Godfrey, BSc PT, MS PA-C

A 34-year-old male presents to the emergency department with right arm weakness. He woke up 2 days ago unable to move his arm. The patient reports having hypertension but has no history of diabetes, stroke, cardiac disease or tobacco use. He drinks alcohol daily. The patient complains of numbness and tingling in his arm. He […]

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September 1st, 2017

Obesity Counseling: Getting Real

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

“Your BMI puts you in the obese category. You need to limit weight gain to 10 pounds this pregnancy.” As the obstetrician’s words sunk in, I was overcome with embarrassment. Sure, I knew I was overweight, but I was pregnant. And according to my BMI, I have been “obese” for years. But this was the first […]

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August 17th, 2017

Primary Care’s Got Talent

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

There is one hour each day in the office that I refer to as the “golden hour” – from 6:30 to 7:30, either AM or PM. For the sake of my personal life, most days I aim to be at my desk for one of those two slots but not both. During this time, I’m usually […]

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August 9th, 2017

Curing the Culture — A Gentle Nudge

Harrison Reed, PA-C

You and I have covered a lot of ground this year. We exposed the fallout of a toxic workplace culture and discussed some of the first steps we can take to fix it. We reestablished respect for our patients. We adjusted some of the biggest problems with our sign-out process. We reminded ourselves of the power […]

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